Once upon a time in
a fantasy land there was a country similar to almost all the other
countries around. That being how a large group of very wealthy and powerful
people controlled the government and the commerce... even many of the social
mores as well. They worked hand in hand with most, if not all, of the religions
of that country, to impress upon the masses just what and how folks could and
should live. You know, how to live with wars, live with wide polarities in
income, live with divisions between racial groups (duh, defacto
segregation?) and other tangibles.

Now, inside of this
country there was this thing, this beast , that many of the regular folks
were both afraid of and angry about. Yet, those who ran the country (always
behind the scenes by the way) liked the fact that this beast existed, and cared
not to rid the country of it.

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This beast had to be
fed and fed quite often, as it was so famished for its food. So, those who ran
the country made sure to feed it with what it required:

Predatory
lending to the masses at high interest rates; over half the
nation's spending going for the military with lots of military occupations and
excursions abroad with lots of killings; lots of dead end full and part time
jobs to barely keep the masses above water; terrible health coverage for most
of the masses ( "If they'd rather die, then they'd had better do it
and decrease the surplus population" ); lots of rental housing by absentee
landlords (usually corporate ones)charging too high rents ; lots of propaganda
using both the flag and the cross to keep the masses obedient, and on and on.

Those who really ran
this fantasy country made sure that only elected officials who would keep
feeding this beast could hold office. So, they easily co-opted their
orchestrated Two Party system to lend the illusion of an adversarial
environment. Sadly, the only adversity was about everything but what
food this beast required. No, that menu could not be altered.

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The irony of this
scenario was that it was in reality so few of the masses who actually
benefitted by keeping this beast alive and well. However, it remained to be
true that, to date, it was still a small minority of the masses who
actively worked to destroy it. No one really knew when that would all change...
and the beast just kept licking its lips...

{Philip A Farruggio is the son and grandson of Brooklyn, NYC longshoremen. A graduate of Brooklyn College ( class of '74 with a BA in Speech & Theater), he is a free lance columnist posted on World News Trust, Nation of Change Blog, Op Ed (more...)